OREM — “The Church and the world have a great need of Eucharistic adoration,” said Pope John Paul II, in his 1980 apostolic letter Dominicae Cenae.
Following those words, dozens of children of all ages get together every first Thursday of the month at Saint Francis of Assisi Catholic Church to celebrate a Holy Hour in Spanish. They also gather on the other Thursdays of the month to pray the rosary.
This all started years ago, when Vicky Flores, a St. Francis of Assisi parishioner, began taking her two children to church to pray the rosary with her.
“My mom taught me about the rosary, and she was always making sure that I was close to God,” Flores said.
When she became a mother, she immediately decided that her children needed to feel the same love that she feels from and for God.
“Little by little other moms approached us and started praying with us,” Flores said. After a while, the mothers approached Fr. David Bittmenn, then the parish pastor, with the idea of inviting more children to join them in prayer.
“First, we started praying the rosary to Our Lady of Fatima, explaining to the kids about the apparitions and message that Our Lady gave us,” said Flores, who believes that the message of Our Lady now more than ever invites the youngsters to pray together.
“Then we started going to the sanctuary, to start knowing Jesus better, and we talked to the kids about what Adoration is,” Flores said.
After that, Fr. Bittmenn gave the group permission to formally start a Holy Hour.
“So now, besides praying in front of the Blessed Sacrament, we also adore, worship and give thanks to God and ask him for all the kids and their needs and for the needs of the world,” Flores said.
The children who participate are also taught about the prayers, why people pray, why people go to Mass, and its symbolism.
“Every first Thursday we celebrate Holy Hour; every second Thursday we pray the rosary for the unborn; every third Thursday we also pray the rosary, but the children write their intentions on a paper. These are placed in a box in front of the altar and, after praying some mysteries, we go out and talk about spirituality,” she said.
Every Thursday Flores is accompanied by two or three mothers from the parish.
“We want to put those roots of spirituality in our children; we want them to grow with the certainty that Jesus loves them, that they are not alone and that when you have God in your life, nothing is impossible,” said Flores, adding that through this time with the children she has discovered that many of them feel lonely.
“Most of the parents need to work, so frequently the kids are left alone, leaving them with a void … but here with the rosary and the Holy Hour we want them to know that they are not alone – Jesus loves each one and he is always present, he is alive in their hearts,” she said.
Children of all ages are welcome to participate in the Thursday rosary and Adoration. All the prayers and discussions are in Spanish.
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